Shear sharpener



N0v.24,1936. T, HLOUDEN l 2,061,842

SHEAR SHARP-EINER Filed April 5, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 .ZM/mme,

Zim@ daban T. H. LOUDEN SHEAR SHARPENER Nov. 24, 1936.

f 2 sheets-sheet 2 "5 Filed April 5, 1935 Patented Nov. 24, 1936 STATES A' L T FEE 2 Claims.

'My invention relates to improvements in shear Sharpeners and the main object is to provide a Vdevice bywhich shears or scissors may be readily and conveniently sharpened, properly beveled on their cuttingA edges, and in the case of shears which have been sharpened numerous times before, thinned down on their blades so that the -cutting edges are of the correct width.

Another object is toprovide a device of this kind in a simple and inexpensive form comprising a base member having upstanding posts at each end lcarrying ,a vertically adjustable and movable horizontal guide rod and having an upstanding vand forwardly and upwardly inclined vise rib ,against which the shear blade is placed and secured by U-shaped clamps slipped kover the rib and drawn against the rib and shear blade by set screws. The sharpening element (stone or file) Iis mounted in a handle frame having a carrier o rod to support Ait over the guide rod whereby the sharpening element may be moved back and forth over the cutting edge of the shear blade and will sharpen the same at a bevel or angle determined by the vertical adjustment of said guide rod. Y

kAnother object is to provide in a device of the Vforegoing form auxiliary clamp members adapted for. ,mounting within the U-shaped Vclamps set forth and to grip and support a pair of shears so Ythat the blades may be filed or ground voff on their Vouter sides or faces to thin the cutting edges of the blades.

With these and other objects in view the in- ;vention resides in the novel construction and arrangement of parts as hereinafter fully set forth and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is an elevation of my Sharpener with a pair of shears clamped therein in position for sharpening one blade.

Figure 2 is a plan View, the shears being omitted and the sharpening element shown in place. i

Figure 3 Yis a section along the line 3 3 in Figure 1, a lshear blade being shown in cross section in the clamp, the position of the sharpening element being reversed, and a C-clamp being shown in use for clamping the device to the bench or table.

Figure 4 is a View similar to Figure 3 but showing the auxiliary clamp members in place and holding a pair of shears in position for thinning one blade.

Figure 5 is a perspective View of the said auxiliary clamp members alone.

Referring now with more particularity to the drawings my invention comprises a base or body member designated generally at made up of two spaced parallel upstanding posts 'I joined vby a frame 8 and with flat horizontal feet 9 adjacent the posts. Said frame is turned forwardly at I0 adjacent one post 'I and rst inwardly at II and then forwardly at I2 adjacent the other post and a clamp or vise rib I3 joins these two forward bends, being thus parallel with a line Ypassing through the centers of said posts 'I and being offset endwards toward one post as shown. It will be noted that this clamp rib I3 is inclined from the vertical upward and back toward the posts 'I for a purpose to be set forth, and that the rib some distance above `the base line of the frame extends forwardly forming a fiat horizontal apron or. ledge I and is then turned down in the form of a flange or lip I5. The base thus formed may be fastened near the edge of a bench or table A by screws (not shown) through the feet 9 or by clampingthese feet down to the bench by C- clamps B of conventional form as shown in Figure 3. The base may be mounted with the clamp rib I3 either turned toward or away from the edge of the bench according to the direction in which the sharpening element is to be used as will be hereinafter described.

' The posts 'l have vertically extended bores I6 Yopening out thru the tops of the posts as Shown and these bores are interiorly threaded or tapped at I1 near their upper ends and intermediate their ends slots I8 open out through the inner or facing sides of the posts. A guide rod I9 is loosely and slidably mounted at its ends through the slots I8 into the bores I6 and rests at these ends on expansion coil springs 20 set in the lower closed ends of the bores below the rod. Adjusting screws 2i are threaded down into the bores I 6 against the ends of the guide rod and by screwing these screws down or up in the posts the vertical height of the guide rod may be varied while at the same time the rod is re- .siliently supported or upheld by the springs 2B in whatever position it is set.

The ledge I4 is slotted out at 22 at spaced points along and adjacent the clamp rib I3 and U-shaped clamps 23 may be set up over the rib by placing one leg 24 of each said clamp up through the slots as shown. Clamp screws 25 having winged heads 26 are then threaded at 2'Iv through the other legs 28 of said clamps and by turning these screws against the adjacent face of the clamp rib the other legs 2li of the clamps may be drawn tight against the rib.V A rectangular hat leaf spring 29 is secured by a screw 3U up against the underside of the ledge i4 and engaging the bights 3! of said clamps 23 holds the clamps in position.

One blade C of a pair of shears D may thus be clamped along the clamp rib I3 by engaging the clamps 23 over said blade and turning up the clamp screws 25 and when properly arranged the cutting edge C oi the blade will be exposed in the clear above the upper edge of said rib. The offset portion of the rib i3 away from one post 'I as described provides a space 32 (Figure 2) in which the other blade of the shears D may be disposed as evident in Figure l.

The sharpening element designated generally at 33 comprises an elongated bar or frame 3d having a fiat underside 35 and turned down at one end at 35 forming a shallow socket 3'I. A rounded handle 38 is formed at the other end and at the junction of said handle and the bar Sil and on the underside a shoulder 39 is formed having a socket or recess 4i) opening out flush with said flat under face 35. A flat rectangular clamp block lli is placed loosely in this recess lil and extends out at one end therefrom to engage a at file or abrasive stone E laid along the underside of the bar and entered at its other end in the socket 31. This exposed end of the block 4I is beveled off as at 42 and a screw 3 with winged heads ed is threaded at 45 through the shoulder 39 and engages the block in such manner that when the screw is turned inwardly the block is forced up against the fiat face 35 of the bar 34 and this beveled end 42 will then engage and exert an endwise pressure on the member E to hold the saine in place. This outer end of the block is normally urged away from the bar 34 by a small expansion coil spring l5 placed in a recess 4l in said block and engaging the said bar.

A carrier rod i8 is extended parallel along and spaced from the bar 34 and is firmly anchored at 49 in a lug 50 extended from the bar near the handle 38. The opposite end 5I of the rod 48 is free and entrance is thus formed at 52 into the cleft or space between the rod and frame.

In use the shear blade t is clamped as described along the clamp rib I3 and the sharpening element is put in use by slipping the carrier rod 4Q over the guide rod I9 (Figures 2, 3, and 4) whereupon the said sharpening element may be moved back and forth at an angle to the guide rod being meanwhile supported thereby. The le or stone E, may thus be brought into play across and in contact with the cutting edge C' of the shear blade C to sharpen the same by repeated strokes of the sharpening element. The aforesaid angularity or slope of the clamp rib I3 presents the blade C in position to sharpen its edge at the proper and necessary bevel (Figure 3) as will be understood. This bevel or angle of the cutting edge may be further varied by vertical adjustment of the guide rod I3 which supports and guides the sharpening element and which adjustment varies the angle of movement of the sharpening element relative to the blade in its clamps. The sharpening element may be used in either direction, that is, with the handle end at either side of the guide rod I9 as desired and as found best according to the work at hand. The springs 20 resiliently supporting the guide rod I9 allow the proper pressure to be brought to bear by the le or stone E on the blade edge C' without changing the cutting angle.

Due to the cross-sectional shape of the usual shear blade wherein it is thicker toward its back edge the inner or cutting edges will gradually become wider as the blades are sharpened from time to time and will finally be too wide for either convenient use or sharpening. It is then desirable to thin the blade or le it oi on its outer face so that the cutting edge is reduced in width and this operation is provided for in my device by a pair of special auxiliary clamps designated generally at 53. These clamps are designed to t within one of the regular clamps 23 and to clamp a pair of shears F with blades closed atop the clamp rib I3 with the outer face G of one blade in proper position so that the le E may work across it and le it off at the proper angle as shown in Figure 4. The clamps 53 comprises a flat rectangular inner clamp plate 54 adapted to slip between one clamp screw 25 and the clamp rib 'I3 and bent at an angle upward and away from the rib at its upper end 55 to engage one edge of the shear blades as shown. The other clamp plate 56 is L-shaped having a foot 51 to slip beneath the rib I3 to prevent upward movement of the clamp and with a rounded and hooked upper end or head 58 engaging the side and top of the shears. This clamp plate 56 is slipped between the leg 24 of one clamp and the rib I3 and when the screw 25 is turned up the shears are held rigidly in the proper position on the clamp rib. The operation of the sharpening element then thins down first one blade then the other (after reversing the shears) and the clamps 53 are then removed and the shears sharpened in the manner set forth.

While I have herein set forth a certain preferred embodiment of my invention, it is understood that I may vary from the same in minor structural details, so as best to construct a practical device for the purpose intended, not departing from the spirit of the invention and within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a device of the kind described, a supporting frame, the same being formed with an enlongated, horizontally extended ledge and a clamp rib extended in parallel spaced relation immediately over the ledge, there being a clearance in the frame laterally of one end of ledge and rib for accommodating a vertically turned shear blade and handle thereof, U-shaped clamps for inserting thru the space between ledge and rib the same being arranged for clamping a shear blade horizontally upon said clamp rib for sharpening, and adjustable means for guiding a sharpening tool at a constant angle across the horizontally mounted shear blade for sharpening same, the said means comprising a pair of posts located one at either end of the frame, the posts having vertically extended and tapped bores opening out thru the top ends thereof and having slots opening out from the bores thru the inner and facing sides thereof, expansion coil springs seated within the bores of the posts, a guide rod loosely and slidably mounted at its ends thru the slots of the posts with the ends of the rod bearing upon the upper ends of the springs, and adjustment screws threaded down into the bores of the posts and bearing upon the ends of the guide rod, whereby the guide rod is resiliently supported and the vertical height thereof may be varied thru the manipulation of the screws.

2. In a device of the kind described, a frame, an elongated ledge horizontally extendedupon the frame, a-clamp rib similarly extended above the ledge in spaced Vrelation thereto, clamps formed to pass thru'the space between ledge and rib and to embrace the rib for clamping a shear blade to the rib in position for sharpening the cutting edge of the blade, auxiliary clamp plates for mounting upon the aforementioned clamps the same being arranged for supporting a shear blade in position for filing off the outer side thereof, and adjustable guiding means on the frame for guiding the abrading tool used in the work of sharpening and ling a shear blade, the said means comprising a post at either end of the frame, the posts being bored and tapped down thru their top ends and being longitudinally slotted laterally thru their inner and facing sides, resilient elements seated within the bottom ends of the bores of the posts, a guide rod slidably mounted at its ends thru the lateral `slots of the posts with the ends bearing upon the upper ends of the said resilient elements, and adjustment screws threaded down into the bores of the posts and bearing upon the ends of the guide rod, whereby the guide rod is resiliently and adjustably supported at its ends between the said resilient elements in the post bores and the adjustment screws.

THOMAS H. LOUDEN. 

